When caffeine has unintended consequences

[FilmBuff]

Has anyone ever experienced certain unusual or unintended consequences stemming from the ingestion of caffeine?

I'm going to share an example here, but before I do, please know it might be slightly TMI for some of you (I'm just guessing here, I could be wrong).

If you don't want to read anything that could be TMI for you, this is your chance to stop now, turn around, and go to some other thread :p

Ok, here it goes.

While caffeine has always been known to have a diuretic effect, something that I did recently seems to have greatly increased the diuretic effect it has on me. I can be OK so long as I keep it pretty low - by which I mean, under 100mg of caffeine a day (usually what a single cup of coffee has).

If I go over that, the diuretic effect of the caffeine can start to become overwhelming. Like, enough to make it so that I can't sit through a whole movie (something I would not have difficulty with under normal circumstances - even for long movies like Killers of the Flower Moon).

This may not appear to be movie-related, but it is! I really don't enjoy having to get up in the middle of a movie, all the more so if I'm watching it in a theater. And, like I said, under most circumstances, it really isn't a problem.

The caveat is that I really have to make sure I haven't had too much caffeine in the last 2 or 3 days prior to the movie.

The last time I failed to take the proper precautions, I had to take a quick break from the movie within an hour after it started - it was quite annoying to me.

What's most puzzling is that I really don't remember having had this problem before. I was, at times, pretty liberal about my use of caffeine, by which I mean it probably wouldn't have been unusual to have 3 or even 4 cups a day.

Who else has had this happen to them and been forced to curtail their caffeine intake?

[Citizen Rules]

I periodically quit caffeine cold turkey. It does ruin my sleep, causes me to take bathroom breaks during the movies. I also take a blood pressure med that is also a diuretic and if I'm not careful I can become quite dehydrate to the point of being loopy and exhausted. I'm exhausted today because after 2 weeks of no caffeine I started having some in the morning which causes me not to sleep, which causes me to have more caffeine, and sleep even worse. It's time for me to go cold turkey again.

[FilmBuff]

It's time for me to go cold turkey again.

Good luck!

[Citizen Rules]

Good luck!It's easy to quit caffeine, the most that happens is a dull headache for a day or two.

[beelzebubble]

How old are you? You may be experiencing a change in your tolerance. As I aged, I began to need to change my diet. At this point in time, I have lactose intolerance, & carbs make me sleepy

[Citizen Rules]

How old are you? You may be experiencing a change in your tolerance. As I aged, I began to need to change my diet. At this point in time, I have lactose intolerance, & carbs make me sleepyDo you mean me or the OP?

[beelzebubble]

Do you mean me or the OP?
I meant the OP. I know you are a man of certain age. I am assuming its close to mine.

[Citizen Rules]

I meant the OP. I know you are a man of certain age. I am assuming its close to mine.Maybe I am:p I'm too tired right now to know.

[FilmBuff]

You may be experiencing a change in your tolerance.

This is certainly a possibility I have considered. However, I've looked around to see if this is typical, and I can't seem to find reliable information about how common a change in caffeine tolerance would be, at any age.

Also, does a change in tolerance levels always mean a permanent change? Or could it be, at least in some cases, a temporary change? If it is temporary, what factors (other than caffeine itself) might play a part?

So while that does appear to be one possible explanation, it's still just a wild guess, I suppose, as long as I don't find any studies or other type of data that might corroborate whether or not this could be tolerance-related or age-related (or both)

[Balor]

I had to read this for my high school chemistry class: https://www.amazon.com/Caffeinated-Daily-Habit-Helps-Hurts/dp/0142181803

Notable for its unintentionally funny descriptions of absolute idiots managing to literally kill themselves with caffine.

[AgrippinaX]

I drink way too much coffee, including at night. But it’s my vice of choice.

[doubledenim]

Coffee doesn't quite take the place of heaters, but it's close.

[FilmBuff]

I had to read this for my high school chemistry class: https://www.amazon.com/Caffeinated-Daily-Habit-Helps-Hurts/dp/0142181803

Notable for its unintentionally funny descriptions of absolute idiots managing to literally kill themselves with caffine.

That sounds interesting, I'll be getting a copy from the local library

[Balor]

That sounds interesting, I'll be getting a copy from the local library

It's a quick read. Not sure if anything is outdated by now, but I'm sure it's still worthwhile.

[John McClane]

these days, if i’m drinking coffee, there best be a well stocked, clean bathroom nearby.

[Hey Fredrick]

I pretty much have completely cut out caffeine. I used to be a ten to twelve cup a day coffee drinker but I hit an age where it just gave me uncontrollable shakes and a hard crash. Only drink decaf now - lottsa cream, lottsa sugar. The only times I have caffeine in any significant amount anymore is when visiting my Ma. Then I'll have about three/four cans of Diet Coke, depending on how long I'm staying and start leaking every fifteen minutes, which is kind sucky because I live about a half hour away. Makes the ride home antsy. When at a theater I always grab a tub of popcorn and a soda which means I'll be visiting the restroom before the film is over. Guaranteed. It's part of going to the movies now.

[Citizen Rules]

I'm 48 hours off the caffeine band wagon. Anyway I slept great last night and didn't have to get up to visit the bathroom...Went right to sleep and didn't toss and turn...and was able to wake up earlier too.

[FilmBuff]

When at a theater I always grab a tub of popcorn and a soda which means I'll be visiting the restroom before the film is over. Guaranteed. It's part of going to the movies now.

You do know some theaters have caffeine-free soda, right?

[Citizen Rules]

I'm 48 hours off the caffeine band wagon. Anyway I slept great last night and didn't have to get up to visit the bathroom...Went right to sleep and didn't toss and turn...and was able to wake up earlier too.Whoops, I just cheated! I had a single shot of white coffee.

[Hey Fredrick]

Yes. I do. But they don't carry caffeine free Cherry Coke or Dr Pepper.

[Mesmerized]

I sometimes take a caffeine pill on days I don't want to drink coffee. I don't have to pee as much.

[Citizen Rules]

Whoops, I just cheated! I had a single shot of white coffee....and I just lied:eek: It was actually two shots I made for an iced peppermint mocha.

[FilmBuff]

Yes. I do. But they don't carry caffeine free Cherry Coke or Dr Pepper.

At AMC you can get a bunch of flavors w/o caffeine if they have a freestyle machine, including cherry Coke.

[doubledenim]

Buy the ticket, take the ride! Anxiety is nothing but the repression of your primal self! Have another cup!

[Hey Fredrick]

At AMC you can get a bunch of flavors w/o caffeine if they have a freestyle machine, including cherry Coke.


The closest AMC to me, which is right down the street, is a total shit hole. Last movie I saw at that one was the re-release of The Exorcist in 2000, vowed to never return and I haven't. The next closest AMC is over an hour away. I could drink 3 Big Gulps of Dr. P, take five leaks and dump at the nearest Marcus Theater and still miss less of the movie than going to that AMC and not leaving my seat. I know when I order the soda I'm going to be using the bathroom before the movie is over. If it was a big deal to me I wouldn't get the soda.

[Citizen Rules]

Too much caffeine yesterday, couldn't sleep last night, time to hit the c-wagon....again...maybe.

[doubledenim]

I will get public acknowledgments at work on my 3rd cup :suspicious:

I’m like, “You guys don’t even coffee.”

I quit making the french press at home (2 cups) then anywhere from 3-5 after that at my last job. My people keep a pot on.

It’s okay. Let’s not bring up people’s Zyn’nies… I mean, I’m kinda disappointed it took as long as it did for those to come to market.

[Captain Steel]

Had similar experience to the OP with Thai Food.

Had a friend that I'd go to an authentic Thai restaurant with and then to a movie, (Don't know where people came up with "dinner and a movie" when it should be the other way around.)

Something in the Thai dishes I'd order had a "cleansing" effect on me. Not that it made me sick, but a couple hours after eating there'd be this volcano effect that had a totality about it! It was urgent, with little warning, so I missed parts of movies several times because I had to run to the restroom. On one occasion we went out on the town after Thai food and I actually ended up running into a different restaurant JUST to use their bathroom!

[cricket]

For many years I have gotten 2 medium ice regular cream and sugar with mocha from Dunks, 1 first thing in the morning, and 1 in the afternoon. On workdays, that first one was at 4:50am just before pulling in to work. That all changed one Friday last July. Now on workdays I only get 1 in the early afternoon. 2 reasons- ok I drive a truck and around 5:45 on the dark highway I would start to spazz out and even freeze up like Mitch McConnell. Really scary and I'd have to slowly pull over. 2nd reason is I would have to crap and I didn't have much time. I would sudddnly have to go on the side of the road, the back of the truck in a box, or out in the woods. Not fun! Then that day in July came when I ran through the front door of Cumberland Farms and I couldn't make it any further-right down my shorts and all over the floor in front of many customers. At least on my days off I can still get my morning coffee. I sit in the parking lot sipping away with a smoke until I get that familiar feeling and I run inside. I can't wait for the elevator but there's a bathroom next to the gym. It's much better than in front of the counter next to the potato chips.

[doubledenim]

That’s why he’s the people’s champ!

That is part of why it was so easy to quit drinking coffee at home. It quit doing the one job it’s suppose to do.

[Austruck]

I'm antother vote for the "certain age" thinking. I used to be able to drink coffee with wild abandon, with no ill effects. When I hit about 45 or 50, though, I started getting heart palpitations. When I contacted my doctor about them, the first question was, "Do you drink coffee? If so, curtail it and see if that helps."

I was skeptical but the heart palpitations stopped. For a while (past the headache stage of early withdrawal), I eased back into coffee. I now drink one mug of half-caff in the mornings and I'm fine. But if I have a second cup later in the day (which wouldn't happen at home--it'd be if I was out somewhere and wanted more coffee), then the jitters or heart palpitations might show up again. It feels like an anxiety attack that I can't figure out, till I realized I've had that second cup of coffee.

It's a bit of a bummer since I love coffee, but I try to keep good-quality decaf in the house (Nespresso Vertuo machine here) for later in the day.

The weird thing is that caffeine in drinks such as Diet Coke never seems to bother me: no heart palpitations, no keeping me awake if I have it in the evening. There is some line somewhere, though, in the evening where I cannot have caffeinated soda or I'll be WIDE awake till 5 a.m. (like, sitting at my desk playing games on Steam because there's no way I'm ready to go to bed). Lesson learned. But even then, no heart palpitations. Just the wide-awake part.

NONE of these things were issues I ever thought about two decades ago.

[ynwtf]

Coffee makes me poop.

I mean, it's like it goes straight through me. Any time I'm feeling backed up, I can generally depend on a cup or two of coffee. Chinese takeout too, if that doesn't cut it.

Not all coffee! We have a restaurant here called Metro Diner. They're pretty good. I rarely have issues with Cracker Barrel too. It may just be the office Folger's brand and how they make it here. Who knows.

[John McClane]

Coffee makes me poop.

I mean, it's like it goes straight through me. Any time I'm feeling backed up, I can generally depend on a cup or two of coffee. Chinese takeout too, if that doesn't cut it.

Not all coffee! We have a restaurant here called Metro Diner. They're pretty good. I rarely have issues with Cracker Barrel too. It may just be the office Folger's brand and how they make it here. Who knows.
i won’t flirt in the line
with a squirting behind
it’s hurting me to stand
why am i drinking this damn brand

[FilmBuff]

So I found out today that these exist:

https://i.postimg.cc/43XPVkVk/IMG-0846.jpg

Each chocolate has 50mg of caffeine (roughly half a cup of coffee)

[cricket]

Been drinking Cold Brew lately and it doesn't bother me as much